[Harp-L] Re: Another Gear Orbit..which 4x10?

[AV1901@xxxxxxx]

Humorous Disclaimer: Yes, of course, tone comes from within.  Anyone not 
playing stock harps through an SM-58 into the PA with no effects  is hereby 
disqualified from commenting on how tone comes from within and how  there is too 
much gear talk. LOL :) :) LOL Really, don't hurt me, I'm  joking, I swear!
 
James: Get the Sonny Junior 410 amp. 
 
E-mail me if you'd like to borrow my Sonny Jr 410 for one of those Blue  
Parrot gigs you have coming up. If its an open date for me, I could bring the  amp 
down for you to try, watch your show, have some Hurricanes, etc. - its  @ 15 
minutes from my house. You could try the amp in a gig situation. Your band  
plays the music I love, and my current too-loud-guitar-led (but he books all the 
 gigs) band doesn't play nearly enough of that stuff.
 
I suggest that you do what I did - call Gary and find a time you can go up  
to his place in Connecticut and talk amps and try before you buy. He'll go  
through tube subbing and mic swapping so you can hear the variety of tones the  
amp can produce. He is a great guy and backs his stuff 100%.
 
I went up to Warmdaddy's in Philadelphia a few weeks ago and got nice  
comments about my amp and tone. An upcoming harp player named Mikey Junior  played 
through it and said he really liked it - he normally plays a  Victoria.
 
When I play with David Bromberg, he has commented on my tone through  it 
also. 
 
Having seen your swingin' band (thanks for asking me to sit in for a tune  or 
2) at a place the band I play with plays (the wonderful Hi Ho  Tavern), the 
Sonny #1 you play through sounded fine. If the keyboard guy  gets too loud, 
you're the boss, turn him down. I liked your bands' moderate  volume, small PA, 
low-tech approach to West Coast Swing.  
 
The sound issue is a tough one. If the in-house PA is really good, and  
everyone watches their stage volume, mic'ing a small amp works fine. I've played  
through my Hurricane V-8 (5 watt class A amp with an 8" speaker) at places like 
 the Bubba Mac Shack at the Jersey Shore and the Dinosaur BBQ in Syracuse,  
NY and the house sound was fine. I pointed the amp right at my head for a  
monitor. 
 
If its a casual gig at a tavern, 4 players lugging the PA in and making  
$300-400 a night, its really nice to have the Sonny Junior 410 amp, *not* mic'ed  
through the PA, for stage volume and projection of a full range of tones. It  
still amazes me how many venues *don't* have a house PA, let alone a good one. 
 With the SJ 410, you become the master of your own domain. 
 
I like having 3 amps to pick from for the gigs I play - small, medium and  
large: 
 
SMALL (class A - 5 watts, 8 inch speaker Fender Champ-like amp) I use a  
Hurricane V-8 for this size. Its great for duos and recording. Actually, in a  
club with a nice PA and soundman (like the Dinosaur BBQ), it works well mic'ed  
through the PA if you're too old and lazy to carry a larger heavier amp.  
Soundmen sometimes have no clue about harp, so you are at their mercy.
 
MEDIUM (@ 30 watts) - your Sonny Jr #1 4x8 fits the bill here (I have  a 
Kendrick Texas Crude Harp amp for this application). Nice for small clubs in  low 
to medium volume bands. 
 
LARGE: (class AB 4x10 "bassman-like" amp) If you get a 4 x 10 amp, get the  
Sonny Jr. 410. I've played through the Fender reissue and a *REAL* 59 Bassman, 
I  owned a Blues DeVille. The SJ 410 is better by far than the reissues and 
damn  close (after more than a year of gigs and the resulting speaker break-in) 
to the  real one (plus less $ - I wasn't smart enough to buy one years ago - 
they must  be close to $5,000 now a days). 
 
Good luck in your quest. 
 
Andy Vincent